


Agent Drift: Untold

by malotofv



Series: Agent Drift: Uprise [3]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015), supercorp - Fandom
Genre: Agent Drift, F/F, Lena Luthor Knows Kara Danvers Is Supergirl, Lesbian Lena Luthor, Luthor-El clone, Parents Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-11
Updated: 2020-01-24
Packaged: 2021-01-27 18:29:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21396712
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/malotofv/pseuds/malotofv
Summary: More revelations from the past, present and the future.Agent Drift (aka Supergirl's sidekcik), the new resident hero of National City had been impressively helpful and always in perfect timing.But nobody's perfect. Everyone has their own light and darkness inside of them, especially if you're half Lena and half Kara, who wants to be like Alex.And wait, what? Another "Elly" had been out there all this time?
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Series: Agent Drift: Uprise [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1462594
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	1. Supercorp Untold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena writes about Kara in her journal too.
> 
> This was how my first Supercorp kiss happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **The following events took place about two years before Project Wrinkle.**

_There was always something about her that intrigues me. How she sees things, situations and people. It's quite amazing, how she believes in the most surreal of things. Weird and skeptically enough, I see her as one._

_I met her on my first day at L-Corp National City, when it was still LuthorCorp, back then. At first, I thought it was an uncomfortable place to be in, or yet an awkward thing to do; trailing behind a well-respected reporter from The Daily Planet who went all the way here just to get an exclusive interview from another Luthor as a welcome party. I didn't knew her back then. Didn't almost see her, but the way she reacted when I told Clark Kent how I was only trying to make a name for myself apart from my family, she already got my attention. Made me thought maybe it wasn't a bad idea moving to this city after all._

_She's from CatCo. And at first, I thought she was Kent's protégé or something; knowing what kind of questions to ask and how to ask them (which I prefer in a way), but she said she wasn't a reporter. She was adorable, really. The classic blazer of the working class wardrobe that she seemed to have, how she smiles with her warm blue eyes as she pushes her dorky glasses up occasionally, and the way her lips parted as if to say something, but was actually mesmerized when I flashed my signature Luthor smirk. Not that I intended to, but, she was just that adorable to watch that I probably pulled off that smirk without even trying or noticing. It just works every freaking time. Can you blame me? _

_Now she's CatCo's ace reporter. From her first interview with me officially as a journalist, I never thought she would end up being my favorite. I can't believe I'm saying this, but she's just a joy to talk to. I didn’t even know that I had it in me, to be able to talk to someone seamlessly like that. Just like having a friendly chat over lunch or a cup of coffee. _

_As it turned out, she's unlike anyone I've ever known nor met before. She was just too good to be true. I never believed in miracles or my dreams as a child coming true, but there she was, sitting right across from me in my office with her bright sunny smile, sharing, giving, infecting me with whatever kind of life with that light in her presence might hold. I was fueled to do better, be better._

_She was my first ever friend in National City and the next thing I know, I was constantly gushing over to spend time with her, text messages and calls included. I don't know. Suddenly, it just felt a little...exhilarating to have a friend like her, someone who seemed so average, yet not so normal. Someone who actually appreciates and values me, who sees the good in me and what I do, someone who doesn't see me as a Luthor. _

_Buying CatCo was more than just a power move to keep Morgan Edge off the...well, edge, but it was actually more like hitting two birds with one stone. I also get to work with my favorite reporter AND my best friend. Oh wait, she was that already? It's not that bad, right? But, oh! The utter look of disbelief on her face when I told her that I bought it was just so...adorable! And priceless!_

_I keep asking myself why I feel such a connection with her, a pretty strong one at that, even stronger than what I had with Lex before. Like I could tell her absolutely anything, and still, nothing would change. That no matter how horrible I might become, she would still be there to look at me as a person and treat me as her friend, as if she never knew or heard anything about the Luthors before. Like she was someone I could entrust my secrets, lies and crimes, my whole damn life with. Too much, I know but that's what I feel about her. Sometimes, I can't help but wonder, is she even for real?_

* * *

"Good evening, Ms. Danvers! Nice to see you again."

The sun has already set when an anxious Kara walked hurriedly towards the LCorp building main entrance. The sound of her shoes echoed through the marble floors of the almost empty lobby as she headed straight for the elevators, too preoccupied with her thoughts to return Hector’s greeting.

_She hasn’t returned any of my calls or messages._ Kara’s hands were pretty full, carrying a large and warm bag of Big Belly Burger in one hand and a big tub of ice cream on the other, while her purse hung over her shoulder. She had to press the button to the penthouse with her elbow and how she wished that the elevator would move faster.

The 6pm news reported another terrorist attack in a chemical plant at the edge of National City. It’s the third time this month, only a week after the last attack in Smallville. The first bombing happened in an old abandoned lab in Metropolis just a couple of weeks ago and Kara knew that only a few people can connect the dots behind these attacks. She snapped back to reality when the elevator started to smell of onions and juicy beef. _I’m coming, Lena._

”How is she?” She called out to Jess right after the elevator doors opened.

“Not good. She still won’t see or talk to anyone but I told her you were coming.” Jess replied quickly as Kara walked by.

“Thanks, Jess!”

Kara headed straight to Lena’s office without even stopping at the secretary’s desk to ask for more details. Black and white marble chess pieces greeted her on the floor when she pushed the door open. She found Lena sitting on the couch, staring out in the city while holding a glass of scotch, with a few broken things and magazines littered all over. Kara walked in quietly and laid down the food on the coffee table and started sweeping the floor to clean up a little, putting back the things from where they were supposed to be.

Lena just sat there the whole time staring out the window, drinking as if no one else was there. It wasn’t that long when she felt Kara take a seat on the couch, eyes looking right back at her and patiently waiting for her to say something. When Lena turned to meet her gaze, Kara’s light blue eyes gleamed with such sincerity and a sudden sense of comfort came over her that Lena just burst out crying.

Kara opened her arms for Lena, who instantly buried her head against her best friend's chest. The LCorp CEO smelled heavily of whisky and a day-old clothes, but she didn’t mind. She let her sob and sniff and weep in silence. _I’ve never seen her like this._ She knew Lena as the one who was always so composed and still intimidating even when in rage, may she be sober or drunk. They stayed there on the couch in each other’s arms until her shirt is drenched with her best friend’s tears. _How long has she been here?_ A few more minutes of silence, she felt Lena sigh and sniff for the last time when her sobbing has finally stopped.

“I brought you food.” Kara whispered.

“I’ve seen the news. They're pinning that last attack on me again." Lena mumbled and took a breath but stayed in Kara's arms.

"Lena, we know it's not you." Kara said softly.

"I've had disagreements with Acre Lee not so long ago, but I would never go that far to get my way. There are people in there! Hard-working employees with families! Why do I have to be born a Luthor?” Lena rambled clearly.

“Hey, it wasn’t your fault and you had nothing to do with it! Your family name doesn’t define who you are.” Kara gently stroked Lena’s hair. For how many more times she has to tell and remind Lena that, over and over again, she didn't care. “Deep down inside, you’re different and you know it! I know it! And so does Alex, and James, and Brainy, Nia and J’onn...we all know it!” She added in reassurance.

"But people don't know that! They'd rather believe that a Luthor owning a media company is another pathetic excuse to change the truth, than believe the truth itself! You know how people's minds could get so twisted these days."

"The truth shall prevail.” Kara solidly whispered like it was something Lena should hold on to because she said so. “Always."

Lena closed her eyes and quiet tears started rolling down her cheeks again. “I'm getting tired of being Lex's scapegoat, you know? He and his mother…the more I try to clean up after them, the more mess they make...” She sniffed and sighed. “So much for keeping the family legacy.”

“And look how far you’ve come? You've been saving this city, this country, this whole planet ever since you moved here in National City! You’ve done such great and wonderful things, Lena. Don’t forget that.” Kara reminded her.

“Unfortunately, the world doesn’t know about that too. When people look at me, all they see is a Luthor. I’ve been trying so hard to build and rebuild everything I could, and for some reason, these monsters just keep coming out of nowhere to destroy it all.” Lena responded, her tone sounding a little worn-out.

“But your friends do. We knew all the things you did, Lena. Even your enemies knew it was you who made a difference. We all see you!" Kara paused and tightened her arms around her friend, giving enough time for her words to sink in. "You don't break that easily, the world knows that. But when you do, and no matter how many times, don't forget that I’ll be right here to pick up the pieces.”

Lena smiled weakly as she looked up into Kara’s eyes that were already looking back at her. They were as warm and comforting as her breath, her strong arms securely wrapped around her. Not to mention that long blonde wavy hair, smile as bright as the morning sun and the sound of her voice which she always looked forward to hearing each day. Kara always seemed to know exactly what to do and what to say to make everything better. Being around Kara has always felt this way ever since the first time they’ve met in this very same room. _What did I ever do to deserve someone like you?_

“I’m sorry, you had to see me like this.”

“Yeah, you look terrible.” Kara said with a weak smile. _But still adorable, I mean._

Lena chuckled. “You don’t need to rub it in.”

“At least try to eat before the food gets cold.”

_That's so sweet of you, Kara._ Lena can’t remember the last time she felt like this towards anyone. She had one or two best friends from before and other kinds of relationships that didn't last very long, but nothing and no one like what she has now with this younger Danvers. Kara always believed in her even in times that she doubted herself and stands by her, even if it means standing up to the rest of the world or to her own friends. _You always remind me and inspire me to believe that I can be the best version of myself. To be Lena, just Lena._

“Let’s eat, then.” Lena insisted.

Kara handed her a burger from the take out bag and laid out the fries on the coffee table. Lena didn’t notice how hungry she was until she opened the paper wrap from a warm and famous serving of Big Belly Burger. The smell of beef and cheese wafted through the air and made her mouth water, and so, they started to eat in silence. But in every bite, Lena’s mind drifted far, far away, back in time to some of her deepest, darkest memories.

_“This is unacceptable! You’re a Luthor! And a Luthor does not have any weakness!”_

_“Do you have any idea how the world will treat us once they find out what kind of a disgrace you really are?”_

_“Don’t listen to them. You are too smart to have any weakness. Let it become your strength and use it to your advantage. Use it to deceive the enemy.”_

Those were Lionel, Lillian and Lex's words ringing inside her head. Life being a Luthor was almost like living in hell. Not that she had been there before but most probably, it was just as close. She’s still proud to be a Luthor, alright. But everything that Lena does was either disappointing or not good enough. But not for Lex, perhaps. He was her hero. Was. Because somehow, she knew he really believed in her even for just a little while. If it wasn’t for him, she can’t imagine who she would be right now.

_“You don’t deserve the Luthor name...”_

Even her mentor was disappointed to who she turned out to be.

_“You got that backwards. The Luthor name doesn’t deserve Lena.”_

And then there’s Supergirl, who also believes in her despite the fact that she figured out how to synthesize green kryptonite to keep Reign contained. It might be sheer luck to be trusted again by a Kryptonian superhero, after all the unpleasant history between their families.

_"I do trust you, Lena."_

“Lena? Lena!" Kara was almost yelling. "What’s going on in there?” She asked, breaking the silence. “You were gone for a while, are you okay?” Kara asked as she wiped the grease off her lips with a napkin.

“Oh, yes. I guess I just...didn’t realize how hungry I was until I took a bite off these wonderful burgers.” Lena smiled at her friend. “I feel better now, thanks to you.”

“I’m glad you’re feeling better.” Kara smiled back. “Oh look, we still have ice cream!”

“Oh, right. Now, that’s a lot of ice cream.” Lena took notice of how big the tub was.

“We can finish this tub while watching a movie or something, if you want. You have Netflix, right?” Kara asked, pointing her burger at the flat screen TV mounted on the wall.

“Here? In my office?” This made Lena smile more.

“Yeah, I’ll keep you company. It’s still early anyway, so...what do you say?” Kara shrugged.

Lena paused for a while and took a deep breath as she looks around her office. “I have a better idea. How about we finish this back to my place while watching a movie, is that okay?”

“Oh, are you sure?” Kara sounded a little surprised.

“Yes. And as you can see, I also need a nice bath, so...” Lena curled her lips to the side.

“Great! Sure, that sounds great.” Kara agreed after realising she wasn't allowed to refuse.

“Perfect! Alex mentioned you loved The Shining.” Lena smirked weakly.

“Oh, no! Please not The Shining. Anything, but The Shining.” Kara shook her head as she crumpled the empty burger wrapper and Lena chuckled while chewing on her last bite.

_At least she’s laughing again._ Kara thought.

* * *

_It was there but I never really wanted to acknowledge it, because I wanted to keep things professional like it should be. But it was there, I know it. The very moment our eyes met inside her office, it was almost like seeing a long lost friend. Almost. Just by the way her gaze seemed to measure mine, and how the tone of her voice makes a layer of skin at the back of my skull vibrate; I knew she was something, has something, means something, but just can't quite point it out. That feeling have always been there._

_At the very back of my mind, I thought she was hot. No, scratch that. Cool. Yup, that's the word. A more appropriate word to use._

_Being her friend was more than I could ask for. We didn't talk much, just the small kind at first, I suppose. Until one day, she started opening up to me about more personal things. Like her family issues for instance. _

_For all we know, being a Luthor means getting what she wants when she does, and exactly how she wants it, as if having that name alone was already an all-access badge to almost anything and everything. Almost. But because, just like everything else, being a Luthor has its own inevitable consequences that I guess, cannot be helped._

_It's a good thing to know how different she is from the rest of her family. She's just as brilliant and intimidating, yes. But after having such deep conversations with her, though short, I find her more...humane. She said being a Luthor wasn't much of a choice and surprisingly, I get exactly how she felt and what she meant by that, in an instant. Like I was in her shoes, once; been there, done that. As odd and impossible as it may seem, it turns out, we had a lot in common._

_Sometimes, she would let me see her shed some tears, if not, drowning herself to expensive whisky or wine, and I'll be more than glad to come running to her side to give her my shoulder or my arms, even if she doesn't want it. Sam was right. Lena makes a facade for people to see how strong she is, but in reality and deep underneath those power suits, high heels and cheekbones, fierce eyes and red lipstick, she was completely made of mush._

_That discovery alone made me want to protect her with everything that I have. Not that I think she can't protect or take care of herself, because we all know she is just as capable of that and all, but because I know what it feels like to be alone. To be surrounded by people who acknowledges your existence, yes, but also be in a place where you know you don't truly belong. And so, I had this urge, a want to be there for her. Like…always._

_And so from exclusive interviews for the magazine, it suddenly became gala invitations. Then lunch, and brunch or dinner, to rain checks that turned into unannounced visits at work, even at home. Now, she's included in girls' night, game nights and Thanksgiving. Clark warned me about the Luthors countless of times, but something tells me Lena’s different. And I’ve already known that since the day I met her._

* * *

Lena woke up with a stiff neck and realized she fell asleep while sitting on her bed and leaning her back against the headrest. The TV in her bedroom was still on.

_Didn’t you have a sensor to detect when no one’s watching?_ Lena thought and rolled her eyes as she reached for the remote control over the blanket by her feet to turn it off. _Guess you’re not that smart at all._

It was still dark outside, not traces of sun anywhere but the dim light inside her room. Turning, she found Kara by her side, sound asleep like a baby.

_Well, look what we have here._ Lena smiled at the sight before her. Kara was breathing loud and steady, yet looking so peaceful and fast asleep.

_You forgot to take off your glasses, nerd._ Lena leaned in and was about to move her hands to remove Kara’s glasses, but then decided not to proceed and just let her friend sleep. She thought her job as a reporter could probably be more exhausting.

_You are quite a sight, indeed. I wonder how many guys have cried over you._ Lena sighed as she wondered and stared at her blonde friend for a little longer, feeling lucky to have Kara in her life. She caught some blonde strands in her hand after gently running her fingers through Kara’s hair on her pillow. She looked at it closely as it glimmered like pale strands of gold under the yellow light coming from her night lamp.

_My wonderful Kara…you can’t be the only one in this world._ Lena leaned in closer to look closely at her pretty eyelashes behind those dorky glasses.

_Natural curl? And her pores are so small. Hmm...interesting._

Lena didn’t notice she was leaning in so close to her with their faces only an inch apart until she feels Kara’s warm breath.

_Sweet corn._ That's what it smelled like. Suddenly out of nowhere as if something seemed to have pulled her closer, Lena leaned in and gently brushed her lips against Kara’s.

_So soft and so warm...this feels oddly nice._ She closed her eyes wanting to stay in this moment a little longer, savoring the softness and the warmth of their lips embracing each other, knowing very well that this wasn't really happening. She held out her hand to touch her pale cheek.

Lena froze and her eyes went wide when she felt a hand on her cheek. To her surprise, Kara’s eyes were still closed and asleep. Lena’s heart jumped and began racing so fast but she was also able to calm herself fast enough to pull back very, _very_ slowly. She felt the hand on her face fall back to the bed and to her horror; Kara’s lips broke into a smile.

_What the hell?!?_ Lena swallowed and despite being in a discreet mode of panic, she managed to slowly lie back down to her side of the bed, turning away from Kara. She hid herself under the weighted blankets, both in shock and in shame.

_Oh, my god, what just happened?!?_ Lena squinted and shut her eyes tight hoping it was all just a dream but it wasn’t. She opened her eyes and blinked again, as little grains of cold sweat started to form on her skin somewhere.

_No, it definitely wasn’t a dream!_ She wanted to, but didn't dared to look back at Kara. The thought of her eyes being open at that moment sent shivers down her spine. Lena closed her eyes and tried to push away all her thoughts by counting backwards.

_Was it?_ Lena felt guilty for smiling. It didn't take that long before her smile faded and her heartbeat slowed down as she drifted back to sleep.

Kara opened her eyes to the sound of a faint police siren not too far away, though, it wasn't loud enough for normal people to hear. It always reminded her of Maggie, and what she said about how Supergirl should let the police do their job sometimes. The sun is starting to light up the room when she realized, the ceiling looked different. That this wasn’t her apartment.

_I'm in Lena’s apartment._ Kara’s eyes went wide but she felt relieved at the very instant that she found her lead-lined glasses still exactly where they should be. She looked at her side to see Lena sleeping like a fair princess, silky pale skin and long dark hair resting all over her pillow. It was nice to see her bare lips for a change, in natural pale pink and not covered in red lipstick. She looked so calm and at peace, as if she worries about nothing at all.

_What a sight for sore eyes._ Kara stared at Lena, trying to memorize what she looks like at this state; no makeup, no LCorp or CatCo, no breaking news, headlines or media press...she's not even a Luthor right now. She's just Lena.

_How could you possibly be still so full of compassion and call yourself a Luthor? You’re a hero._ Kara knows exactly how it feels to be surrounded and judged by people based on what her family have left behind. Cleaning after the escapees from Fort Roz wasn’t exactly fun and easy either. But unlike Lena, she had been surrounded by a loving family and trusted friends. Kara looked at the CEO with such admiration, knowing how strong, brave and tough this woman right in front of her truly is. That underneath all the lies, crimes and controversies that the Luthors are known for, a good and soft heart still exists. And this woman who is peacefully sleeping right beside her has it.

_You don't have superpowers. But when people try to break you, you never give in. You simply refuse to break. I always wondered how you do all that._ Kara wondered as she gazed at Lena closely, leaning in and blinking repeatedly to see if she will still be there, making sure this wasn't just any kind of dream. It made her heart smile for some reason. And the next thing she knew, she was planting a soft kiss on Lena's temple, right at the top of her full, soft arched eyebrow. _Oops._ She pulled away slowly, biting back her lips.

After four seconds, Lena grunted and opened her eyes to a smiling Kara.

“Hi.” Kara whispered softly as she froze and let her thoughts scream. _Wooaaah!!! That was clooose!!!_ "Did I wake you?" She simply added. _What?!?!? Why did I even ask her that?!?!?_

“Hey, you stayed.” Lena murmured with a smile. _What a way to wake up. Good morning, sunshine._

“I fell asleep from all the ice cream. Did you sleep well?” Kara asked calmly while her neurons still run wild in panic.

“Yeah. What time is it?” Lena asked but didn't move, her eyes still half-closed.

Kara sat up on the edge of the bed, discreetly shaking her nerves away. She looked at her wristwatch and stood up. “Quarter to five. It’s still early, you can go back to sleep but I have to go.”

“What?” Lena refused to hear that correctly. _Already? No, please stay for a bit longer._

“Yup! I don’t want to be late for work.” Kara replied.

“You won’t be. What about breakfast?” Lena yawned and stretched like a cat under her blanket.

“Lena, I...” Kara started but was torn between a want and a need. _I...would definitely love to!_

“I’m your boss, remember?” Lena smirked in a clear banter. It was too late to take those words back, after she sounded like she was trying to be bossy and cute. Discreetly.

"I haven't forgotten, Ms. Luthor." Kara chuckled.

Lena looked at Kara, who was standing by the bed with a bright look already on her face, wearing a maroon MIT sweatshirt and a pair of skinny jeans from the day before. Both her hands were resting on her waist, with warm morning blue eyes staring back at her. _Hold it right there…now, that’s a view._ “Did you sleep well?” Lena asked.

“Yes, I did.” Kara answered. _It was wonderful._ "So, rain check?"

"Yah, of course." Lena smiled before saying a soft. “Thank you.”

“For what?” Kara asked like she had already forgotten what that was for.

Lena paused for a brief moment to admire the little crinkle that appeared between Kara's eyebrows. “For always being there for me.”

“Always.” Kara blushed and smiled.

They gazed and blinked at each other as if trying to read what's on each other's minds. Kara standing there in Lena's sweatshirt, while Lena slowly rubs her toes together under the sheets, both of them torn between waiting to hear and wanting to say something. It was a good full minute when a soft honk from a large vehicle down the street came to break their silence.

“Okay, ace reporter, you can go now. I don’t feel like leaving this bed yet, so...you know your way out?” Still sprawled in bed, Lena opens her arms wide, inviting Kara for a goodbye hug.

“Yup! I’ll see you later, then.” Kara gave Lena a quick embrace, catching a whiff of her hair that smelled of stargazers, if she wasn't mistaken.

“Please don’t forget to return my favorite sweatshirt.” Lena nodded after Kara pulled away from her. _It wasn't really, but it is now._ She let Kara go and returned to snuggling up under the warmth of her blanket.

“Umm...I’ll have to think about that.” Kara replied with a playful grin. _No, this sweatshirt is mine now!_ She slipped in her shoes, grabbed her coat and bit her lips to stop herself from smiling like an idiot. A quick wave and she walked her way out of Lena's bedroom and out of the apartment. She closed the door gently behind her and paused for a while to look at the view outside the tinted, full-length glass windows just a few steps away.

The yellow sun is starting to peek in the distant horizon, through the skyscrapers of the city, pushing the darkness away and spilling the sky with fresh hues of blues and yellows. Kara was startled for a second to hear a muffled shriek, followed by a short giggle and soft stomping of feet on a cushioned surface. It was Lena. And that made her idiotic smile finally break out across her lips, her pearly white teeth glimmering in the morning light as she said to herself:

_Good morning, National City!_


	2. Falling But Not Failing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Agent Drift thought defeating the Rad Squad would make everything feel better, but when Supergirl found out about the reason why she decided to fight alongside her, it only made the young hero feel like it was all for nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah! The angst...

“Agent Drift! Rough night?”

Supergirl greeted the young superhero as she hovered atop the NC Tower, one of the tallest structure standing in the heart of the city. It had been a rough night for both of them, but Supergirl has already recovered from her successful brawl with Skater.

“How did you know I was here?” Drift was sitting on the edge of the building trying to catch her breath._ What a perfect damn timing._

“I saw you.” Supergirl simply said.

“Are you following me?”

"No, I was on my way back to base when I saw someone sitting on top of this building from a mile away." Supergirl landed swiftly on the ledge of the concrete tower. "I just thought you might need a little...help or something. I didn't know it was you.” She stepped a little closer towards the young girl, while the wind blows on her cape. "A ride home, maybe?"

A raised eyebrow was all she got as an answer. Supergirl didn't see it at first, but then she noticed that Drift's suit was drenched with blood. It was torn open on one side of her arm, and another larger slash on her leg just above her knee, revealing an open wound.

"You're bleeding!"

_Oh, she's being friendly._ “Yeah, sorry. I’m not one of those bulletproof superheroes like you.” Drift answered without even looking at her own wounds, or meet the concerned gaze from the Girl of Steel. Instead, she allowed herself to be distracted by the night lights and the soothing sound of a peaceful city.

“Err…I could give you a ride back to…your base?”

Drift just let out a huge sigh, pretending to ignore her.

“No? The...hospital, perhaps?” Supergirl insisted, sounding a little worried.

Drift smirked. “Thanks for the concern but, I can heal myself too, you know?" The young blonde girl took a deep breath, still staring out into the nice view. "Just not as fast as you.”

“Oh." Supergirl stared at her wound that was indeed slowly closing up, while her red and gray suit started repairing itself. "Woah! That's a cool suit you got there!" She muttered, failing to keep her amazement to herself. “Where’d you get it?”

“Are you seriously asking me those questions, Supergirl?” Drift responded as she flashed her a weak smile, then went back to getting lost in the lights of the city.

Supergirl gazed out in the same direction before settling on the ledge, only a couple of feet away from the teenage hero. Drift seemed to be a little bothered by this.

"I like this part of the city." The Girl of Steel started. "I can see and hear everything from up here."

Drift kept silent. She just sat there and pretended she didn't hear anything.

"So…" Supergirl continued.

_Uh-oh. Here we go._ Drift actually felt a bit nervous from hearing that single word.

"Where are you from?" The Kryptonian asked.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Supergirl staring curiously right at her. Like she was studying her, perhaps using her x-ray vision to see what Agent Drift is truly made of.

"Uhm...here?" Drift muttered. She can feel the Kryptonian's eyes scanning her entire body. Luckily, her nanosuit was interweaved with tiny lead particles, making it impossible for any Kryptonians to see through her suit. _Seriously? Do you really have to go there?_

"I mean, obviously, you're not human. What planet are you from, exactly?"

"Does it really matter where I'm from?"

Supergirl suddenly fell silent. _A girl is not in the mood for a chitchat. Not as friendly, I see._ "I come in peace." She replied with a smile, trying to keep the conversation light.

"I'm sorry, I just don't know what to tell you." Drift threw a quick glance at the older blonde by her side before staring back out into the city.

“How come?”

She started with a soft sigh. "I was only a baby when my parents died. We were refugees here on Earth and I was too young to know where we were from. I didn't even know where I was born, here or out there."

"I'm so sorry to hear that.” That was all Supergirl could say at the moment. An unexpected feeling of devastation appeared on her face as she tried to think how hard that must’ve been. It raised more questions that she wanted to ask the young girl.

“No one can give me answers.”

Drift looked at her with such sad eyes that were enough to silence her from asking more questions. Perhaps she didn’t realize how persistent she was getting or how closed and private this girl could be when she didn’t even know whom she can trust. Maybe she shouldn’t ask too personal questions.

“But...you look too young to be fighting these battles. How old are you exactly?" She can’t help but wonder loudly.

"I have these abilities for a reason. Is there a right time to help those in need? When it's...what, convenient? Or safe?" The young girl deflected, deciding not to answer the question and somewhat sounding a little pissed off. She looked up into the sky to watch the blinking lights from an airplane behind the dark clouds up ahead. “How old were you when you first rescued someone?”

Supergirl licked her lips to help calm her nerves down a little at how repulsive the teenage girl is slowly becoming. But it didn’t stop her to keep pressing. She needed answers. "You have a point. But what made you choose this life? To be a hero at such a young age?"

Drift turned to her with her eyes squinting. “Where’d you get your suit? Who made it?”

“That’s classified.”

“What’s your name when you’re not wearing it?”

“What do you mean, when I’m not wearing it?”

“You never take it off to wash it?”

“What made you think it needs washing?

“So, you don’t have a spare suit.”

“What made you think I only have one suit?”

“What made you think, that I think, that you only have one suit?”

“I didn’t!”

“Oh, so you do wear it all the time, then!?”

“Says who?”

“Exactly!” Drift had to let out a cackle, leaving the older blonde’s face confused and puzzled.

“Wha-?” Supergirl took a deep breath to concede. “Okay, you kinda lost me there, smarty pants.”

"You're nosy, you know that? Are you some kind of a cop?” Drift suddenly asked in clear annoyance. “Or a journalist by any chance?"

"W-what?! No!" Supergirl scoffed and swallowed. “What made you think that…”

"Is this an interview for tomorrow's paper? You ask too many questions." She softly snapped back at her while shaking her head.

"I just want to know if we're on the same side." The older blonde replied in defense, finally getting rid of the sudden tingling sensation under her skin.

“We are.” Drift sighed. “But that doesn’t mean I have to open up and be friends with you.”

Supergirl just looked at her with utter disbelief. _Are teens these days really like this? Why do you not even want to be friends with Supergirl?!?_ “Of course, I’m gonna need more than just that.”

“We ended it, didn’t we? Together?” Drift replied.

Supergirl sat in silence and listened intently, patiently waiting for what she has to say as if she was somewhat unconvinced.

For the past few months, Agent Drift had been making her appearances short, yet, just at the right moment whenever Supergirl needed an extra set of hands. They had a few encounters against the Rad Rebels and members of the squad themselves, and even without a plan, they both seemed to work together efficiently. Drift had been very helpful in a lot of ways, but the young blonde girl seemed to have no time, even for small talks. She always making her leave, right after the enemy has dropped unconscious to the ground or when it’s already time for clean-up.

Kara actually found it impressive at how Drift seemed to know exactly how to move against her opponents and where to hit them, using mostly her knees and elbows to deliver her powerful blows. She can’t fly but she can jump really high, and every single take off, each of her landings were as light as a falling feather. Dreamer, Brainy, Guardian, and even J’onn had gushed over her swift movements when she came in to give them assistance against the rebels around the city.

“The former DEO Director, Alex Danvers." Drift gazed right into the eyes of the Girl of Steel to see how she tried to mask the surprised look upon her face with a blank page at the mention of that name. "I owe my life to her and this is my way of paying her back. You used to work with her, didn't you?"

"Yes! She was quite exemplary. A good agent and honorable." She answered quickly. _How come Alex never mentioned you to me?_ Kara started to wonder, as more and more questions started to pop up inside her mind.

"True. She trained me, taught me everything I needed to know about this planet. She's my mentor and I admire her so much that I had my suit made to look like hers."

There was a brief moment of mutual silence between them for the fallen director. A little awkward, but Kara was able to snap out of her thoughts, from reminiscing her memories with Alex.

"It does look like hers." She mumbled while looking closely at the impressive dark gray suit that Drift was wearing.

Its red details and the pads on her shoulders, knees and elbows seemed solid and adequate enough to stand blows that were as strong as her punches. Her pair of red, mid-calf boots appeared to be more durable than it looked; like they were made of some high quality leather. But something tells her they were made of something more indestructible than that. The whole suit was skin tight, but obviously not made of fabric, some kind of innovative technology and also a familiar one at that.

"Ah! So, you're from the DEO? How…” She started again breaking the silence. “How are you holding up?”

“Eh, you don’t need to worry about me. I can take care of myself.” Drift answered, brushing her off.

"So you're from the DEO?" Supergirl asked again.

Agent Drift only had to turn and look at her with a resting bitch face.

“I guess that's classified too." Her lips curled a little to the side, forcing her little dimples to show. It was kind of awkward, diminishing at some point even, to try and get answers from a teenage girl about ten or fifteen years younger than her.

"The Rad Squad…” She started again, changing the topic this time. “You helped me stop them. I mean, no, it was more like…I helped you stop them. Alex must be so proud of you.” She smiled at the young blonde.

“It won’t matter anymore, Supergirl. She’s no longer here to tell me anything.”

To Supergirl, it sounded a bit bitchy and pretty straightforward. But somehow, she understood. “I know how hard it must’ve been for you. I’m really sorry.”

“Sorry?” Drift let out a loud scoff. “You’re really sorry? Is that really all you people can say?” Her voice grew as if what Supergirl said was offensive.

“Hey, what does that supposed to mean?”

“See? You don’t get it either.”

“Wha-?” Supergirl was obviously confused and Drift just sighed before scratching her eyebrow.

“I’m sorry. As you can see, I’m a little tired and banged up and maybe a little bit hungry over here. I lost someone I really cared about and that someone isn’t just…some person. She’s an agent, a director, a leader and a protector. Not just of the civilians and the heroes of this city, or this country, but of the whole planet. She’s THE director. She’s the hero that no one sees. I just find it revolting that people kept saying “I’m sorry” because it’s the easiest thing to do. She deserves more than that.” The young girl blabbered, leaving the older blonde dumbfounded.

“I…I don’t know what to say.” Supergirl somehow understood what she meant.

“Now, that is a more acceptable answer than “I’m sorry”. How about you, how are you holding up?"

That made swallowing seem so hard all of a sudden, like she just got caught off guard. “I…I don’t really know. I guess I…never really had the time to let it sink in just yet." Supergirl lied.

“You have worked with her for a long time.” Drift studied her face like being in an interrogation, and she knew that how Kara would speak about the director would tell a lot about who she really is.

“Yeah, we were…partners. She’s always been there for me and now that she’s gone, I can’t let my guard down more than ever. I may not be working for the DEO anymore, but that doesn’t mean I have to stop protecting this city.”

“She told me you always had each other’s backs. She spoke fondly and so often about you. She looked up to you. It must be hard for you too.” Drift muttered, her eyes not leaving Supergirl.

“How much exactly did she told you about me?” Supergirl wondered out loud once again.

“I had my own lot of questions too, but she would always answer, “It’s classified!”

She didn’t tell me much. Just enough to inspire me to be a good agent and to always remind me why we’re doing what we’re doing." Drift sighed and turned to look back out into the city.

"That’s one thing I liked about her. She brings the best out of people that she believed in, and keeps them grounded at the same time. I wouldn’t have accomplished all the things I did in the past without her. But still, look at you…you’ve managed to stop the bad guys without her. How did you do it?” There was curiosity in the Kryptonian's eyes and perhaps, also a hint of admiration.

“Aside from years of sleepless nights, training and planning on how to defeat this demon squad…I had to let her die first?” Drift said calmly without even flinching.

“Hey, don't beat yourself up, it wasn’t your fault.” Supergirl quickly replied.

“I have these powers, yet, I wasn’t able to help her. She shouldn’t have been alone in there…” The young blonde looked at her small hands as she closed and opened them slowly.

Hearing those words made Supergirl a bit saddened at how they sounded too familiar. And even when a sudden pang of guilt came crashing over her, letting out a huge sigh would at least help her ease up and create a disposable mask to not break the young girl’s spirit.

“She wasn't, and she always knew something like that would happen. No one could’ve anticipated what went down that day so, stop blaming yourself. Even I, can’t be in two places at once."

“You know what, it doesn’t matter…” Drift replied softly.

“That’s right. We already stopped the bad guys. We saved the city and that’s what matters.”

“Oh, I didn’t just stopped them. I ended them.” The young girl casually said.

Supergirl paused to let the words register and linger for a little longer, just to make sure that she heard it right. And it echoed inside her head like a buzzer. “You did what, exactly?”

“They’re like weeds that kept growing back even after pulling the roots over and over, so…”

“So you…you killed them?” She wanted to make sure it was what Drift meant.

“The one thing you’re not capable of doing.“

The Kryptonian can’t believe what she just heard. She blinked but it didn’t change a thing, as a wave of sudden outrage started to build up inside her chest. “You took this opportunity to get your revenge? What made you so different from them?”

“Well, I had to do something to stop them. There’s just no other way, Agent Dox said it himself...”

“Killing is never the answer!” A yell suddenly escaped her and her breathing quickened. She just had to stop Drift from speaking, rejecting to believe of how horrifying their conversation had unexpectedly escalated into. _I knew there was a catch!_

“What could you have done then, huh? Supergirl? Knock them out, tie their hands and lock them up one by one, only to give them the chance to break their way out again, just so they could draw bigger and better plans over and over and over?”

Supergirl rose to her feet and started to walk away, refusing to hear anymore. But Drift was persistent.

“You can’t outrun the truth. Have you lost count of the times they did it? Of the casualties and damages they’ve caused?” The teenage blonde stayed still on where she was sitting and doesn't seemed to be bothered by what was coming out of her own mouth.

“There will always be unavoidable casualties in this line of work!” Supergirl can't believe what she was hearing from this teenager. But she can believe how she is starting to dislike this girl's bluntness in that very instant.

“Oh, I’m sorry! I guess you never get tired of counting losses as well, so yeah, let’s just keep the bad guys at it, forgive them and give them a third, fourth, even a fifth chance to trash this place. I’m a hero, and that’s what I would do to keep this city safe from harm!” Drift uttered, mimicking Supergirl’s voice.

Supergirl had to let out a fake chuckle while shaking her head. _The nerve?!_

“But I hate to break it you girl, but in this kind of city that we’re currently living in, and the kind of enemies that we're facing, sometimes, killing is the only answer!” Drift finished flatly.

“Wha-? Are you out of your mind?! How could you even say that?!" Supergirl can't take it anymore. _How old is this girl, about fourteen? Maybe fifteen and she's talking about killing as a solution?! I bet she's not even allowed to drive yet!_ "You can’t just kill for revenge and call yourself a hero! We defend and protect everyone! EVERYONE! And we NEVER kill for revenge!"

“Never, kill for revenge? As in…never?” Drift sounded a bit unsure and a bit sarcastic as she looked at the caped heroine, pausing only to tilt her head a little to the side as she allowed her words to sink in. “You can drown in your own bubble of hypocrisy, Supergirl. I on the other hand, have orders to follow. Thank you for your service!”

Drift stood up from the ledge after realizing that her suit has all closed up, indicating that her wounds from the fight with Captain Rad has completely healed. She’s ready to go anyway so she started to walk away from by far, her longest conversation with Supergirl. She can't believe that this old Kryptonian is still blinded by the old school books that she still goes by from where she came from.

"So, you are from the DEO!" Supergirl followed after the young blonde. “Oh, I’ve been part of the D.E.O. and I know perfectly well what they stand for. More importantly, I know Alex and everything she stood for, more than you or anyone else in this planet will ever know!" She called out to her.

Drift turned around to face her. “Too late. She’s gone! It’s all over now anyway, and I already made sure of that! Haven’t you seen the news?”

_What does she want? Whose side is she really on?_ Supergirl thought to herself in a scowl.

“After everything that she had taught you…all the days you spent training with her, what you just did completely went against everything, EVERYTHING that we stand for! Alex would never EVER want you, me, or anyone to do something as horrible as that!" Supergirl countered while throwing her hands in the air.

“Are you sure about that?” Drift squinted and took a step closer to her. “Then why did she taught me how not to hesitate?” She shook her head with her eyebrows raised and all Supergirl could do was swallow.

“She chose me because she believed in me and I followed her because I believed in her too. She is the only reason why I am who I am today while…where were you? Hiding and freelancing behind your cape, thinking it would protect the people you love the most? How did that worked out for you?”

Supergirl didn’t know how to respond to that. Drift was starting to get on her nerves, not only because the way she said it was insulting but also because it was true, and it burns like hell. This young blonde hero-wannabe is slapping it right into her face and appeared to be mocking her for the last twenty minutes or so.

“Oh no, missy, you cannot put that on me! I did what could! You know what? I’m taking back what I said! After what you did today, it’s you who put shame and dishonor to her memory! You’re not a real hero, Agent Drift! Alex Danvers can never be proud of someone like you!”

“You don't know anything about me!!!" Drift snapped back angrily at her.

"Then who are you, Drift?! Because you're obviously not a god; their lives aren't yours to take!" Supergirl tried to be the bigger person.

"THEY TOOK HERS!!!" Drift screamed like an angry little girl, her hand pointing up sharply, out into the city as tears in her eyes started to betray her resolve. "Justice?! A second chance at life?! Hope, help and compassion, is that what you're saying?! Because Harun-El, all these powers and abilities like ours was their second chance at life, yet, they chose to kill anyway!"

Supergirl was stunned and speechless, knowing exactly what young girl meant by that. The way Drift said it felt like something just shattered deep inside of her chest. She lowered her gaze at the city down below and let out a sigh and Drift started towards her.

"It was you who left her, and you let them take her life away! How dare you talk to me about gods?!? El Mayara my ass! Look at me!" Drift was in rage, pointing a finger at her with tears in her eyes that were burning intensely of what Alex had left behind.

Supergirl has every right to be offended but she can also see so much pain deep inside those eyes. Her point about Alex was as clear as day. And for some reason, she can't stay mad at this young girl who was only trying her best to help out in ways she can and to honor Alex's memory. Everything she said was true and deep inside, she can still feel the guilt too. She knew, Agent Drift is hurting just as much as she does and so, she let the young girl lash her grieving heart out.

"This missy may not even be half as good as you, but this missy had to make decisions that even you can’t make just to fill that big hole that the both of you left behind! And now, you’re telling me, I’m not a real hero?! She can’t be proud of me?!" Drift pointed out under her breath. "Maybe you’re right, how could someone ever be proud of me when they’re already dead?! SHE IS GONE, AUNT KARA! SHE'S GONE BECAUSE THEY KILLED HER!!!”

Supergirl felt a sudden gush of cold wind behind her back. She thought she heard her wrong. Agent Drift was crying, trembling, breathing heavily. “What did you just call me?” 

“It...it doesn’t matter. The bad guys have...been s-stopped, the city is saved and th-that’s what matters.” Drift stuttered in between sobs as she backed off from her while shaking her head. "T-take all the credit, I don't care."

“Who are you, exactly?” The Girl of Steel suddenly got confused. She felt completely lost in the moment and the thought that something or someone had definitely been keeping her in the dark. _Could this be just another trick? _She swallowed as her mind started to wonder, her heart started to beat faster, now running a different race.

Looking at the young girl carefully and stepping closer as she backed away, she searched her mind, trying to remember if she was someone she knew or have met before. Her blue eyes and blonde hair, her small plump lips and the cleft on her chin…she must’ve seen her somewhere. But unfortunately, as much as she tried to recall, she doesn’t ring any bells. _It must be Alex who told her._

“It doesn’t matter anymore, Supergirl. I-I don’t…” Drift let herself fall off the ledge shaking her head, before she could even finish her sentence.

“Drift!” Supergirl tried to chase after her but when she looked down the ledge, the young blonde girl in red and gray suit had already disappeared. Strangely enough, she can't even hear her movement, her sobs or her heartbeat in any direction. _Who are you?_

* * *

“Brainy! Have you heard from Elly?” Kara was going through her speed dial again, looking for her nephew. _It's already late and he's still not home._

_“Uhh…no, that kid really knows his way of staying off of my radar. Have you tried calling him yourself?” _Brainy replied.

“Umm…yeah, I can’t reach him either. And can you please give me a complete autopsy report on the Rad Squad, as well?”

_“Uhh...I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I cannot provide that information to you…”_

“I just need to know how it really happened. Can you do that for me, please?”

_“…yet, but for now, what I can tell you is that…” _

There was a pause on the other end of the line, then Brainy started mumbling in a lower voice.

_“…all six of them are heavily secured, still very much alive but barely breathing.” _

“What happened exactly? But they said it, on the news, they were gone for good? And Drift said she…”

_“Yes, Agent Drift did an excellent job at making sure they can never terrorize this city again.”_

“Uhh…could you please explain that to me further?”

_“You see, they are all unconscious as of this moment and based on my calculations, they will stay unconscious for...uh…a pretty long while.”_

“For how long?!”

_“Umm…let’s just say that the possibility of every single one of them regaining consciousness at their present state is about 15 percent.”_

“Fifteen percent, so they’re still alive and far from being dead?”

_“They are still alive, yes but far from being dead…I'm afraid that is definitely a no.”_

“What exactly do you mean? They're almost dead?!?”

_“Uhh...yes. And they can all regain consciousness, which by the way won't be happening anytime soon, and even if they do, they will not be able to move the majority of their muscles except for their involuntary organs and a very limited brain activity.”_

“So they're basically...completely paralyzed? What about their powers? Are they healing?”

_“Something like that, and as a matter of fact, no. There was something inside their bloodstream, some kind of toxin preventing them from using their healing abilities. And I’m afraid they will no longer be able use that ability, even if they regain their consciousness in about…uh…six years, give or take? Or maybe more. Now, if you will excuse me, I have eyes on me as of the moment and I will now have to end this conversation which never even occurred.” *blip*_

“What?! Wait, Brainy?! Ugh!” She clicked her tongue and pressed the next number on instinct. The line was already ringing and she took a deep breath as she waited impatiently for someone to pick up.

_"You've reached Alex Danvers. You know the drill. *beep*"_

"Hey, Alex..." She tried to speak casually like she used to but her voice suddenly cracked at the sound of her sister's voice. She froze, and for some reason, she waited for something that she knew would never happen. It felt like something got stuck in her throat as a tear fell from her eye.

No one would probably even hear what she has to say, she knows that. And yet, she didn’t want to hang up. Instead, she swallowed thickly before taking another deep breath. "I...I miss you." _*blip*_

Kara had to take a moment to breathe and compose herself before pressing another speed dial. She sniffed and wiped her eyes dry as she waited for James to pick up, after making sure that it was his number she was trying to call.

_“This is James Olsen. Leave a message. *beep*”_

“Hey, umm...have you heard from Elly? He’s gone off the radar. Again. Please call me? *_blip_*” And then she decided to call Lena's number after two seconds of thinking.

“Pick up Lena, come on. I know you’re there.” She paced impatiently, chewing on her lip and was about to dial the next number when Lena answered.

_“Kara? Is everything okay?”_

“Hey…hi!” For some reason, her heart seemed to have skipped half a beat and almost forgetting why she called. “I…I was just wondering if you heard from Elly? I-I can’t seem to find him.” There was a long pause from the other end of the line but Kara waited, hoping, silently praying that Elly is safely with her.

_“Oh, no…have you tried calling him?”_ Lena asked.

“Umm…I’ve been trying but I can’t reach him. Could you just please, please, let me know if he ever calls you?”

_“Yeah, sure. I’m…I’ll try to call him too.”_

“Thank you.” Kara ended the call and let out a huge sigh before trying J’onn’s number this time, with her face completely worried. “Where are you, Dumpling?”


	3. I Was Yours And You Were Mine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Agent Drift heads back to headquarters with her mission accomplished but her heart heavy. It's quite disappointing when people sometimes forget that she's only fourteen.
> 
> Another flashback of Lena's POV from Elly's Wrinkle Room days.

_"...you put shame in her name and her memory..."_

The words kept ringing in her head.

_"You're not a real hero, Agent Drift!"_

Drift catches her breath while she kept slipping from rooftop to rooftop, clumsily hopping her way into the city and towards the Lighthouse tower, which appeared to be black and blurry under the night sky with tears coating her view. The sparkling lights from the windows of the buildings seemed to have blinded her, causing for her to crash land on the LCorp penthouse balcony and stumbled on its concrete floor with a crash.

“Oh, sorry about the...” Drift tried to speak despite the panting, after the impact caused her to roll on her side a few times. She kept trying to catch her breath while her body sprawled flat on the floor.

“Are you alright?!” Lena Luthor hurriedly ran out to meet her. There were cracks on the tiled floor where Drift had landed and her face was flushed and soaked.

“I did it...I finally did it! They’re gone...they’re all gone!” Drift exclaimed, smiling between her sobs despite the tears that were streaming down her cheeks. She kept breathing heavily, trying to shake Supergirl's voice out of her head.

“Yes, good work! You did a great job out there today.” Lena said with a worried expression on her face as she tried to help the young blonde stand up to bring her inside, but Drift was just too weak and heavy so they stayed on the cold floor of the balcony for a while instead.

“But why does it feel like this? It...I...I feel terrible.” The young girl smiled like it was something laughable, before starting to cry.

“Tell me what happened.” Lena insisted.

“Sh-she’s gone and sh-she can never be proud of me. I-I shamed her.” Drift stuttered between her sobs.

Lena hugged her and rubbed her back to try to calm her down. “Hey...don’t say that.”

“I’m not a real hero...” The young girl cried disillusioned.

“Who would even say something like that?!”

“S-Supergirl…”

“Wha-...she wasn’t even there, she didn’t know what really happened!” Lena stated, feeling a bit outraged.

Drift looked and sounded like a little child who've just been bullied by older kids. And Lena was sitting right in front of her, listening intently and comforting her as she babbled and cried.

“Sh-she hates me. Th-they both hate me.” Drift's heavy sobbing kept making her stutter. She obviously can't breathe.

_She’s having a panic attack._ Lena pressed her hand at the back of Drift’s headgear, causing her face to scramble a little like a pixelated image, indicating that an Image Inducer is shutting off and showing her real face. Her shoulder-length blonde hair turned to brown, her deep blue eyes changed into a greenish hue and her fierce on-point eyebrows became thicker, friendlier, while the feminine shape of her face became more chiseled and defined, turning into a more familiar face.

“Just breathe, Elly. Deep breaths and you’re gonna be just fine.” Lena whispered to him.

She tried her best to speak and act calmly but for some reason, her words only made him cry harder. As if on instinct, Lena stood up to run back inside her office and snatched one of the crystal decanters by her refreshments. Her hands trembled as she hurriedly headed back out to the balcony, and almost stumbled on her high heels as she took a quick swig. Streams of clear amber liquor escaped from between the bottle and the corner of her lips, rolling down her chin and dripping on the ivory blazer she was wearing. She managed to set the decanter upright on the floor before kneeling down again, gently holding Elly’s face with both hands as she swallowed. And as calm as she could, she told him, while looking right into his blue-green eyes:

“Look at me. Look at me, Elly...listen to me, you did what you had to do, okay? You stopped the Rad Squad, you saved the city…you saved us all. You did something that no one, not even Supergirl can do, and I…look at me, I am so proud of you. Do you hear me?” Lena muttered as clear and as truthful as she can and she knew there's no other perfect time for Agent Drift to hear it.

Elly just nodded weakly as he blinked his tears away. He started to breathe slower but his short and sharp sobbing hasn’t stopped.

“You did it. Not the other superheroes, not Supergirl. You. You did it. You, are a hero.” The LCorp CEO muttered proudly in her deep, low voice.

He stared at Lena’s eyes and calmed down for a few seconds. They stayed there on the floor still in silence. Elly’s breathing went back to normal, but the silence was doing something else inside his head.

“She was my hero. And she’s never coming back.” Elly's voice cracked and he started to cry again.

Lena just sat there unable to say a thing. She took a deep sigh and felt her own tears rolling down her cheek, knowing there was nothing more she could say to make him feel better. Instead, she held him in her arms against her drenched chest, and let him bawl his eyes out for as long as she thinks he needed.

“I’m…I’m right here, I was right here, why can’t…why can’t she even see me?!” Elly rambled as he sobbed.

“She will, soon enough.” Lena kept on mumbling words to comfort him. “I’m right here, darling. I’m right here.” _Mommy's right here._

Car horns below the LCorp tower started blaring softly in the distance. The sound of vehicles making their way throughout the busy streets of National City have slowly faded. The night was cool and began to quiet down little by little, until the cold balcony floor felt unusually peaceful.

Elly’s head felt heavy but warm against her chest. His deep, slow breathing tells her he’s slowly falling fast asleep. Lena closed her eyes as she heaved a sigh of relief, taking a long whiff of his long brown hair while he cradled him, and everything else suddenly disappeared.

_Let me stay a bit longer in this moment. A few more minutes…_

** _===--- ***ABOUT THIRTEEN YEARS AGO*** ---===_ **

_I haven’t had any proper sleep in weeks. There were just so many papers to sign, unsuccessful tests to redo and modify, press conferences and everyday meetings in and out of the building...there was so much work to be done as always, but seeing Elly always felt like a getaway. A time to breathe, do what I want and be myself at my own time. In fact, it’s the only thing I look forward to everyday. _

_There was this one night when I found myself passing through my office just to grab my usual glass of drink and almost crawled my way into the Wrinkle Room, feeling completely depleted by work. I haven’t seen him in almost twenty hours and I can’t imagine how cranky he would get after waking up from sleeping for that long. He must be so mad at me right now, that I had to take an incredibly deep breath before entering the command for engaging protocols._

“Good morning, Wrinkle. How was your sleep?”

_A barely year-old Elly made a loud grunt before starting to wail angrily while floating in mid-air, the very moment I got his tubes pulled out. I must admit I was a little nervous when I opened up the window of his pod to take him._

“Ooh...I really messed up this time didn’t I? Okay, shh...I’m so sorry.”

_I sat on the edge of his pod as I reached out my hand towards him to try and calm him down. _

“Okay, I’m here now, Elly.”

_I mumbled my apologies softly._ _He drifted towards me but refused to be touched because he kept crying louder whenever I tried to._

“Uh-oh, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed...”

_I bit my lower lip and felt guilty at how adorable I found his angry little face. I never felt so bad for being right until then. I backed away to give him a bit of space and let him breathe._

“Okay, I’m gonna let you be mad at me right now, alright? Go on, I know I deserve it.”

_His cries bounced off the walls of the room as he drifted around his pod, tossing, turning, waving his little arms and punching his tiny fists in the air. I went back to my drink on the lab desk and watched him cry from a distance. Then I picked up a book, took a deep breath and started reading out loud. _

> _“On the fifth day-again, as always, it was thanks to the sheep-the secret of the little prince's life was revealed to me. Abruptly, without anything to lead up to it, and as if the question had been born of long and silent meditation on his problem, he demanded:_
> 
> _"A sheep—if it eats little bushes, does it eat flowers, too?"_
> 
> _"A sheep," I answered, "eats anything it finds in its reach."_
> 
> _"Even flowers that have thorns?"_
> 
> _"Yes, even flowers that have thorns."_
> 
> _"Then the thorns—what use are they?"_
> 
> _I did not know. At that moment I was very busy trying to unscrew a bolt that had got stuck in my engine. I was very much worried, for it was becoming clear to me that the breakdown of my plane was extremely serious. And I had so little drinking-water left that I had to fear for the worst._
> 
> _"The thorns—what use are they?"_
> 
> _The little prince never let go of a question, once he had asked it. As for me, I was upset over that bolt. And I answered with the first thing that came into my head:_
> 
> _"The thorns are of no use at all. Flowers have thorns just for spite!"_
> 
> _"Oh!"_
> 
> _There was a moment of complete silence. Then the little prince flashed back at me, with a kind of resentfulness:_
> 
> _"I don't believe you! Flowers are weak creatures. They are naive. They reassure themselves as best they can. They believe that their thorns are terrible weapons ..."_
> 
> _I did not answer. At that instant I was saying to myself: "If this bolt still won't turn, I am going to knock it out with the hammer." Again the little prince disturbed my thoughts:_
> 
> _"And you actually believe that the flowers-"_
> 
> _"Oh, no!" I cried. "No, no, no! I don't believe anything. I answered you with the first thing that came into my head. Don't you see—I am very busy with matters of consequence!"_
> 
> _He stared at me, thunderstruck._
> 
> _"Matters of consequence!"_
> 
> _He looked at me there, with my hammer in my hand, my fingers black with engine-grease, bending down over an object which seemed to him extremely ugly . . ._
> 
> _"You talk just like the grown-ups!"_
> 
> _That made me a little ashamed. But he went on, relentlessly: "You mix everything up together . . . You confuse everything ..." He was really very angry. He tossed his golden curls in the breeze._
> 
> _"I know a planet where there is a certain red-faced gentleman. He has never smelled a flower. He has never looked at a star. He has never loved any one. He has never done anything in his life but add up figures. And all day he says over and over, just like you: 'I am busy with matters of consequence!' And that makes him swell up with pride. But he is not a man-he is a mushroom!"_
> 
> _"A what?"_
> 
> _"A mushroom!"_
> 
> _The little prince was now white with rage…”_

_And then it hit me. Was it worth it? Me, letting my work get in the way of spending time with him? I had been doing bigger, better things for the greater good. The Isis Pod may be exceedingly convenient to handle all of his cleaning and feeding, to make him sleep and keep him well-entertained...but have I been working way too hard to even let a day pass by without even touching him, speaking to him or seeing him in person? Because that just basically sounded like very bad parenting._

_Thirty minutes of his whimpers felt like an hour and I’ve already finished my drink. I felt so tired and sleepy but the guilt just kept me wide awake. I deserved it. I only stepped in closer when his crying had died down and I sat on the edge of his pod as I watched him sob quietly. _

“Are you still mad at me?”

_His crumpled pink face started to soften, yet I still feel awful. The drink made my head feel heavier so I laid down on his cushioned pod for a while, with my feet dangling by the edge. He drifted right above my head, the both of us underneath a projection of the vast outer space all over the interior walls of his pod. I almost forgot how breathtaking it could still be, being surrounded by billions of stars, revolving galaxies and colorful nebulae._

“I’m so sorry, I was late. I’m here now.”

_I heard a disappointed grunt between his sobs as my eyes became heavier by the second. He finally stopped crying, but his soft babbles were like music to my ears._

“You want me to read you another book?"

"Hmm..."

"You missed me, didn’t you?”

“Uhnngg...”

_He kept responding in grunts and soft coos while my eyelids finally decided to drop and the room fell silent for what only seemed like minutes._

**“Rrrriiiiiinnngggggg!!!!!”**

“Ugh, please…leave me in peace…” _I remember mumbling groggily._

_I pushed my eyes half-open to a throbbing head and a heavy chest. I looked around to realize I have fallen asleep inside Elly’s pod and found it so difficult to open my eyes wide._

**“Rrrriiiiiinnngggggg!!!!!”**

_That must be Jess signing off and to remind me of my morning schedule for tomorrow. My eyes wandered inside the pod to search for Elly, but he wasn't there. I thought he must’ve drifted out of the pod so I tried to push myself up but my body failed to move. I called out to him, instead._

“Elly?”

**“Rrrriiiiiinnngggggg!!!!!”**

“Uhhng?”

_My eyes went wide when I realized that Elly was awake and resting on his belly right on top of me. I can't help but smile._

“Oh, there you are! You found me!"

_Was that how it felt like, waking up on the right side of the bed? _

"I thought you wandered off somewhere. Jeez, sorry I fell asleep on your bed. How long was I out?”

“Ayyyhheeeiii…”

"Really? You're not mad at me anymore?"

**“Rrrriiiiiinnngggggg!!!!!”**

_He just cooed happily. I probably dozed off for about an hour. Maybe. I decided to just ignore the phone call. I rested my hand to his back and gave it a comforting rub, drawing small, gentle circles with my fingers. Elly's back felt as soft as the sound of his laugh and I felt a smile spreading across my face while my eyes slowly started to droop again._

“You like this?”

“Uuhhmmm…” _I felt his cheeks pressed gently against my chest. He was smiling._

**“Rrrriiiiiinnngggggg!!!!!”**

“Me too.”

_I lifted my head to take a whiff of his soft baby hairs which smelled lightly of vanilla and milk. I kept my eyes closed to contemplate on his gentle breathing, and hear how he talked gibberishly and squealed excitedly to me. It was wonderful to hear and see him so happy. His laughter are binaural beats of frequencies to my ears; calming, sparking joy, motivation, creativity, good sleep. I lowered my head back down his bed, and wrapped my arms gently around him._

“I missed you too, Wrinkle.”

**“Rrrriiiiiinnngggggg!!!!!”**

The sound of her phone ringing snapped Lena back to the cold balcony of her office; back above the noisy streets of National City - back to reality. She whipped out the phone from the pocket of her blazer and swiped the answer button.

“Kara? Is everything okay?”

_“Hey…hi! I was just wondering if you heard from Elly? I-I can’t seem to find him.”_

Lena hesitated for a moment, trying to think of some other excuse to say. “Oh, no…have you tried calling him?” She ended up saying.

_“Umm...I’ve been trying but I can’t reach him. Could you just please, please, let me know if he ever calls you?”_

“Yeah, sure. I’m…I’ll try to call him too.”

_“Thank you.”_

The call ended and Lena gazed at Elly, still quietly fast asleep in her arms. She took a deep breath and tried to move her strained legs from sitting on the floor for too long, but her knees screamed in pain. Pausing to catch her breath, she managed to stretch them slowly until the numbness feeling disappeared.

_Okay Wrinkle, let's try this again._ Taking another deep breath, she placed one hand under Elly's knees, preparing to lift him up. She pushed herself up from the floor, and in an effortless instant, his body drifted upwards as light as a balloon on her hands just like how it used to be. This made her smile, a bit amazed and a bit nostalgic at the same time, as she carried her Wrinkle, now in a teenage boy's body, inside her office and laid him gently down the couch.

His wounds from the fight had already healed, given that there weren't any torn, holes or parts of his skin visible from the Nanotech fibered Drift Suit she designed especially for him. A quick scan or two of the Sanitizing Beam to clean him up would’ve been more efficient. But instead, she carefully wiped his face and hands with a warm damp towel, dreamily bringing back memories of him when he was just a little baby.

Lena took her time, even managed to bring out warm, clean clothes that he could wear. A pair of jogging pants, her favorite _Pizza is Power _sweatshirt and the black, thick-rimmed glasses that he was wearing was one of the few spares, hidden in one of her secret drawers inside that office. She gently pulled the clothes over his suit, which seemed to turn translucent against his bare skin, and pulled his red, stretchy headgear down his neck, until it turned into a regular buff scarf, removing all traces of Agent Drift from his visage.

_It's been years since the last time I saw you sleep like this._ Lena whispered to herself as she knelt on the floor by his side while he laid peacefully on the couch. She swept his long hair away from his face and stared at his handsomeness. Just watching him closely, his soft-chiseled chin, perfect nose, high cheekbones and the way his eyelashes curled underneath those glasses, were enough to bring her eyes to tears.

He’s only fourteen and the past year had not been very kind to him. Lena had seen it with her own eyes, of how he struggled and fought hard against himself. But that didn’t stop him from working harder to reach his goal of getting better each day with using and controlling his abilities. The veins that has started to show at the back of his hands were evident enough of how he ascended from being a meek harmless boy into who he is now. A year was too fast, but he managed to bounce back stronger, faster, dauntless, precise, and driven. And she couldn’t be more proud.

_You look so much like her._ She whispered to herself again as she held his hand and stared at him for a little bit longer. Her heart slumped with such relief. He did it. He finally did it. But she still prayed that everything would feel so much better when he wakes up. Finally wiping her tears dry, she gave him a soft kiss on his forehead before standing back up and whip out her phone to make a call. She took a deep slow breath as she waited for someone to pick up from the other end.

"Kara? Hey, he's here with me...in my office. Yes, he just looked a bit tired but yeah, he's okay. He fell asleep on my couch. Of course, I'll keep an eye on him. Okay, I'll be right here."

The call ended and Lena was setting her phone down her desk when she took notice of the stain on her blazer. _I’ll need a change of clothes._


	4. Too Many Lies, Too Many Times

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That time when Elly discovered the truth about himself and confronts Lena.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I don't normally do notes, but this chapter had been waiting patiently on my folder for months already so I suddenly felt the need to reheat before it runs stale. Hiatus and the holidays happened. And the crisis. Jesus! The crisis!

"It's...it's urgent. Yes, I’m fine, just...just get here. Please?"

Lena’s voice from his comms sounded a little odd but Elly refused to move from where he was. The Lighthouse control room is a safe place aside from Ross, the A.I., being there to secure the whole building and make sure that everything is running smoothly.

It’s not just the mellow city noise from down below or the faint sound of the crickets hiding in the grassy little patches by the sidewalk and a nearby park that Elly loved so much, but also the cold gentle breeze and how it smells of everything that National City is made up of. From the damp pavement, dried leaves, trimmed trees, cooked meals from homes and food trucks; of espresso, brewed tea and freshly baked dough from _that_ pizza place, of exhausted rubber tires and smoke from burnt diesel and gasoline, to that faint aroma of tiny living creatures, of pet cats and dogs in sweaters, people everywhere with the scent of the streets clinging onto their clothes.

_“…I know he’s a Danvers...Lex wants him back...”_

Cloudless nights such as this would always mean stargazing. And there’s no perfect place to be in but atop the heart of the city: The NC Tower.

_“So you did it…you successfully made a clone of Supergirl...”_

Aside from all the sound and scents, Elly found something soothing about lying underneath the night sky. About how impossible it is to count all the stars and realizing how the world is way bigger than anyone else’s dreams or problems. That solace could be found just by staring at nothing but the constellations against the darkness, with the Orion’s Belt being the easiest to spot and the most prominent of them all. Three bright stars aligned, as if all in equal size and evenly spaced from one another. But the truth is that, the star in the middle happens to be the farthest one from Earth than the other two.

_“He’s mine! I created him from my own DNA!”_

“Alnilam, the string of pearls.” Elly mumbled to himself referring to the middle star as he stared out into the sky and realizing just how inhaling became quite hard when his sniffles gets in the way as big fat tears started rolling down his temples. He remained floating mid-air, lying on his back still with his Drift Suit on but with his headgear resting down his neck as a regular buff scarf. Blinking towards the sky, he drifted a few feet above the concrete rooftop of the city monument with his heart sinking slowly and falling away.

_“Well, that pesky director got what she deserved...”_

Stars, that’s what they were called. But Elly always wondered what they really were, despite the sources saying they were supergiant balls of gas, more luminous and shining brighter than the sun. They could be planets too or another sun, another source of light and energy, with little planets orbiting around them containing a whole different kind of life, or maybe the opposite.

_"You want to redeem yourself to Supergirl as the good Luthor that you think you are by creating another...abomination out of her without her permission?"_

For Elly, the Orion’s Belt were his guiding stars at night, so he would always find his way. Or rather, signifies the women who raised him and whom he always looked up to. And that star in the middle called Alnilam, had always been his Aunt Lena; perhaps 2,000 light-years farther, yet still shining brighter right in between the Danvers sisters even before he knew what those stars were called.

There are times he wished he could just shut his powers off. Or rather, his own mind and his curiosity. Actually, he could, if only he could listen less of what his instincts tells him. But the truth that he just discovered about himself seemed to be as vast as the dark sky before him. His busy mind thinking back on his life, digging through his memories which all clearly made sense in so many ways. Puzzles were solved and questions were answered, while endless possibilities started to shine and explode, only giving birth to more and more questions.

“Ma? What do I do?” Elly mumbled to himself, his voice breaking into a soft sob.

It’s been more than a year since Alex was gone. And when tough times such as this comes his way, he would always silently call out to her. Elly closed his eyes and tried to quiet his mind, taking in deep breaths through his mouth to calm himself down. He pictured Alex’s kind smile and the way she smirks, relived the faint scent of sweat in her after-work clothes when she comes home, the sound of her voice and the ever so annoying way she calls him Eddard.

“I miss you.”

He had Alex’s farewell note memorized as if it had been stamped inside his brain. Even the way it was scribbled; the wide tail on the g’s and y’s, the long f’s, l’s and t’s while imagining her voice reading it out loud to him:

_Elly,_

_I hate goodbyes but just in case, always remember that I love you and that I am so proud of you. You are that one person in my life, the reason why I kept going and be at my best in what I do. You keep me wanting to wake up and make this world a better place, and make sure that I’ll come home to you at the end of every day. _

_And if you’re reading this, I probably didn’t make it home this time and I’m so sorry. I know it’s going to be hard, but I also know that you’ll make it through because you are my son. You are strong, brave, incredibly smart, and you always know what to do. You are a Danvers. Always will be._

_It’s an honor living such a wonderful life being your mama and having you was the best thing that’s ever happened to me. There were so many times when I wake up in the middle of the night, and I’ll just look at you sleeping peacefully (and snoring loudly) and I’ll have to ask myself each time: Why is there a kid sleeping on my bed?!? _

_But seriously, even if you didn’t came from me, it felt like you did. You are a part of me. And I hope you knew that you are genuinely loved, not just by me but by everyone in the family – our chosen family, especially your Aunt Kara. Keep on taking good care of her, of each other. Always remember that you’re a team. And just so you know, she’s the biggest cry baby I know (You didn’t hear that from me, okay?). Be patient with her because I know she will be overprotective of you like a <strike>hungry</strike> starving mama bear._

_And your fairy godmother? Yup! She’s another cry baby who loves you so damn much, sometimes maybe even more than I do and I know you love her just the same. By now, I guess you know you can trust her with anything. And when I say anything, I mean ANYTHING. Please give her a kiss and a reassuring hug for me every single day or as often as you can._

_Ned, please remember that everything I did, I did for you because you matter and you mean the world to me. I know deep in my soul that whatever decisions you make, you will always do the right thing. The world is bigger than any of us, so follow your heart and be whoever you want to be._

_I believe in you, my Eddard Stark._

_Always,_

_Ma_

_“If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.” – Napoleon Hill_

* * *

"Hey! What's so..."

Lena was already there, standing and waiting for her when Drift landed as graceful as a cat on the LCorp balcony. Much to her surprise, the CEO ran towards her before she could even finish her sentence and placed a palm at the back of her headgear, shutting off Agent Drift's Image Inducer. Now gazing right into Elly's green-blue eyes, unaware of how worried her face appeared to be, Lena cupped his face with both hands before burying her nose and lips at the spot right above his messy hairline. She locked him right inside her arms in a bit tighter embrace, so tight that even Lena can no longer breathe as easy.

"...urgent?" Elly asked with confusion. But the truth is, he had been expecting something like that from her. He can hear her heart beating so fast along with her snuffled breathing. She had been crying.

"Is it really you?" Lena asked softly, the stuffiness in her nose already fading.

"Uhh..." Elly got more confused and found his eyes looking around the balcony in search for another person but no one else was there. "Were you expecting someone else?"

"No, no! It's just..." She suddenly broke away from the embrace and let out a soft laugh, sounding as if she herself was surprised with what she just asked. "I'm just glad you're safe." She added. _Answering a question with another question. He is my Elly._

"Is everything okay?" From where they stood, Elly scanned the inside her office. Even used his X-ray vision to check if someone or something out of the ordinary was in there, but didn't find any except for the shattered glass and a little splatter of wine on the floor. "What happened?! Are you okay?" He blinked anxiously at her.

"I..." Lena tried to search for the right words to say. She didn't thought this through. What to do, what to say, how to act, now that he's here...all she knew is she had to see him right away. _What should I tell him? I don't want to scare him away…_

“Your drink…”

"Oh, I'm fine, it just...it slipped from my hand and um…wait, are you…I mean…h-how was your patrol?" She stammered nervously while trying to deflect his attention.

"Well…there isn't much going on out there tonight, so..." It’s true. But something made Elly swallow a little harder than normal. He tried to answer casually, but his mouth suddenly felt dry. He didn't know why but he suddenly felt uncomfortable sensing Lena's gaze on him. It was a little unusual all of a sudden that he feels like a scared puppy; he can't even look straight at her for far too long. Instead, he walked inside her office and took a seat but only after a few seconds, found himself pacing. Lena knew that something was not right.

"W-what's wrong?" She heard her own voice and thought it sounded a little shaky. _He didn't overheard it, did he?_ She felt a sudden jolt of coldness at the thought and her palms started to sweat. Her heart raced loudly, so loud that even she can hear it. It was going faster by the second, faster than earlier when Lillian was standing right there in that very room, slapping the hard truth right on her face. Her heart started jumping frantically like it wants out, faster like never before, completely forgetting that someone in the room had super hearing.

_Thudthudthudthudthud…_

Elly tried to block the sound out but he can feel his own chest starting to beat along with the same rhythm. It was deafening and scary, every thump sending chills all over his body. He tried to swallow again but a lump suddenly got stuck in his throat. With a dustpan on one hand, a small broom on the other and wondering how and where he got them, he proceeded anyway to clean the shattered pieces of glass on the floor.

"Elly?"

He felt just how Lena's eyes followed him and how her voice trembled while he cleaned up the mess until he slumped down the couch again, wondering why he suddenly feels this way. To refrain himself from fidgeting, he crossed his arms over his chest, but found his fingers tapping on his elbows anyway. He uncrossed them and rested his hands on his knees. But as if hungry for friction, started rubbing his knees with his palms. He noticed it again and stood up, just after the fidgeting went down to his feet, tapping softly on the tiled floors. It felt weird. He paced again, slowly as he chewed on his lower lip and tucked his thumbs inside the rest of his fingers. He took a deep breath and told himself a silent prayer. _What the hell is wrong with you, Lincoln?_

_THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD_

"W-whatever it is, you...you k-know you can t-tell me." Lena stuttered, failing to hide her anxiousness as she watched Elly move restlessly. She had to force herself to sit down on one side of the couch, allowing a safe enough space between them.

Elly didn't know what to say but he knew he needed to say something. Anything. Something inside his chest wants out as he struggled to search for the right words but he just can't figure it out fast enough. His heart was beating as fast as hers. He can feel it, he can hear it, and it was deafeningly loud. As soon as he stopped pacing, he didn't notice that he's been biting the sides of his fingernails until he caught a glimpse of Lena raising her eyebrows at him with a worried look on her face and only waiting for him to speak up.

** _THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD_ **

“I-I’m fine!” He ended up saying.

"Are…are you really…?”

“Yes! I just remembered I have a test tomorrow and there’s one more homework I forgot to finish, so…” He spoke so fast, it looked like he was in a hurry all of a sudden.

“Oh…okay.”

“So, umm…is there…anything else you’d need?” Elly blinked rapidly at her.

“Umm…” Lena swallowed thickly and took her time to think of things or more excuses to say which she kept running out of anyway. “No.”

“I…I should probably go home. It’s getting a bit late.”

“O-okay. Good job today!”

“Thanks!” Elly took a few steps towards the balcony to leave and turned his head to her a couple of times like he was waiting for her to say something. When he didn’t get any response, he finally decided to just go on his way. “’Kay, bye!”

“Wait!” Lena suddenly blurted out, as he was just stepping out the balcony. “Umm…can…can you stay a bit longer? I-I mean, just for the night? I…I need some fresh eyes and a sounding board, I-I’ll call Kara, and…and we can have pizza for dinner if you want? All-in with extra pineapples like the usual? Or…or potstickers and beef fried rice? Your pick!” She blabbered subconsciously and unaware how her smile looked awkward.

“Okay, I lied!” He blurted out all of a sudden as he turned to her, along with a long sigh of temporary relief. “There’s no test or homework!”

“W-what?" Lena silently asked while holding her breath, as shivers found their way from her nape down to her heels.

"I heard it!" Elly replied without even meeting her gaze.

"H-heard? Heard what exactly?" Lena swallowed thickly.

"All of it!"

The silence that followed was dead and deafening and their hearts started to race as fast as their minds. They gazed at each other's eyes, blinking absently while making sense of the few words that just came out of their mouths. Everything fell silent, except for their loud breathing while their chests rose and fell as they both struggled for air.

“I knew Lillian was just here.” He mumbled.

* * *

“Eve?!?” There was a hint of shock in Nia’s greeting, the moment she set her eyes upon someone with a very familiar face inside of Leila’s home, now with bouncy dark curls over her shoulders which, as far as she could remember, used to be blonde.

“Well, good evening to you too, Leila’s friend! I’m Tess Mercer, Leila’s mom!” Tess appeared behind Leila, who was standing by the doorway. She offered her hand in response, with her smile wide and welcoming, leaving Nia very confused.

“He-hello, Mrs. Mercer. I’m Nia Nal…”

“…of CatCo Magazine, I recognize you! And I see, you’re much taller in person! You can call me, Tess.” She replied promptly, with her eyes fixed on their guest who suddenly appeared to be in the mood for Q&A. Their firm handshakes were accompanied by tight squeezes, making each other wince just a bit. “What did my daughter do this time, for us to owe such pleasure?”

“Oh, nothing treacherous, I’m afraid.” Nia muttered, her gaze remaining sharp and not letting go of Tess’ hand.

“She’s just dropping off my book in Biology. Lincoln offered to carry it in his backpack when we went out for ice cream this afternoon and I totally forgot about it.” Leila explained, holding up a hardbound, three-inch thick book to show her mother.

“I’m like Elly’s…I mean, Lincoln’s big sister. He has a curfew and this is just on the way to my place anyway, so…I had to drop by.” Nia felt the need to explain further after seeing the suspicious exchange of glares between Leila and her mother.

“Hmm. And I wonder when I will finally meet this Lincoln of yours. Soon, I hope?” Tess turned to Leila, who seemed to be a bit curious when she was finally able to yank her hand back from that weird handshake with Nia.

“Pretty much unlikely, perhaps.” Leila answered sarcastically and went back inside with her eyes rolling, making Tess let out a soft laugh.

“Lively, isn’t she?” Tess turned to Nia with a smile.

“Can’t really blame her. I heard you were always out of town?” Nia muttered in response, her eyes narrowing suspiciously at her.

“Leila, dear? Can I have a little private chat with your friend here?” Tess blurted out all of a sudden after exchanging a series of coded stares and blinks with the journalist.

“Uhh…kay?” Leila squinted in wonder. “I’ll be in my room. Thanks, Nia!”

“Anytime!” Nia nodded with a smile in reply.

“This way to the study please, if I may, Miss Nal?” Tess gestured for the journalist to come in.

She ushered Nia inside the quiet dim lit study, its walls lined with shelves and cabinets. Display cases were filled with big shiny trophies, some made of glass, some of abstract sculptures, and Nia spotted a few framed pictures of a young Leila here and there. The spacious room had furniture of the same modern style and neutral hues as the large daunting desk, sitting perfectly in front of a ginormous painting of Leila’s portrait, looking classy in her tail coat and equestrian gear.

“Tess Mercer?!? And you’ve been here all this time!?!” Nia blurted out, soon as they were out of earshot.

“Actually, no!” Eve replied in a hushed voice, her uneasiness now out in the open.

“We thought you…” Nia looked nervously around the empty study, stepped a little closer towards Eve and broke into a soft whisper. “We thought you got killed in Albuquerque!”

“Five years ago? I did! But…well…” Suddenly running out of words, Eve swallowed hard and shrugged. “It’s a long story.”

“Well, obviously!? You suddenly went AWOL! First, CatCo, then LCorp? No calls, text or emails, and now you have a new name?!” Clearly, Nia wanted answers.

“And a daughter.” Eve added with a smile.

“What exactly is going on here, Eve?! Spill it! Or…”

“Or what?!?” Her smile was suddenly replaced with narrowed eyes growing with threat.

“I’ll tell everyone you’re here…”

“Okay, wait! I didn’t pull myself out of that rubble in New Mexico just for you to ruin everything I’ve worked hard for!” Eve breathed out heavily, her finger threateningly waving in front of Nia.

“Then tell me what happened!” Nia demanded as beads of sweat started to form on her forehead. A staring contest followed, but ended right away.

“Fine!” Eve turned around and paced. “I got my nosy self in big, big trouble with the drug syndicate that I was looking into, which obviously I was not very proud of, okay?! I’m very lucky that I’m still alive!” She answered in a hushed voice.

“Seriously?! And Leila is your daughter?!? How did that even happen?!”

Eve just rolled her eyes, sighed and paused for a minute. She swallowed thickly and took a deep breath as she slowly paced around the study, her face turning more serious and a little sad in every step.

“You had her all this time and kept it a secret?!?” Nia shook her head, trying to make sense of what Eve just told her.

“Well…” Eve replied as she settled on the velvet couch. “What choice do I have?”

“Wha-…and her father?” Nia asked and sat right next to her.

Eve paused to think before letting out another huge sigh. “I met him ages ago.” She started. “He’s sweet and kind, makes amazing breakfast omelets and all that. But one day he just…stopped calling me and I never saw him again. I was six months pregnant, asked for help from his friends and family to look for him without any luck. I filed a report at the police station, even tried hiring private investigators but they all seemed to dismiss the case or slowly turn me away, which I found very weird, so I decided to investigate on my own.” She rubbed her palms against her thighs slowly as she talked.

“The more I asked, the more I started getting these threats. Small dead animals in my doorstep, my house kept getting broken into, so I had to move from one place to another. It all stopped when I gave up looking for him. After I gave birth to Leila, I started working for Cat Grant right away. But I didn’t really gave up on him, I mean…how could I? It took me years to gather intel from the CatCo servers without getting caught, only to find out that he was a part of this huge drug cartel in Mexico. So I left my daughter, went there for a “huge assignment”, dug deeper, got myself involved with the cartel, made myself disappear and…” Eve ended that sentence with a deep sigh and a shrug, her eyes became a little teary. “...I still couldn’t find him, as if he just vanished out of thin air!”

That left Nia speechless and her mouth wide open the whole time in utter disbelief. “That’s quite a story. But why didn’t you tell us?! Kara, or James? We could’ve done something to help y-…”

“I know, but I couldn’t! I can’t! And I’m glad that I didn’t get anyone of you guys involved!” Eve butts in. “And then I met Andy.” She continued with another sigh, nodding to the large desk in the study. “He isn’t funny, nor the sweetest, nor the most caring guy you’d ever meet, but he’s very smart and crafty. He did everything in his power to help me disappear again to get me out of there and…here I am!” She ended with a weak smile.

“So…Leila? Does she…”

“She doesn’t know anything about her real father. She doesn’t need to know, and I’m not planning to tell her anything about the past!!! I’ve been trying to give her a normal, peaceful life, so if you could just…please?!?”

The fear and desperation was clear as day in Eve’s eyes. Nia took in a loud deep breath, along with the latest information. “You little Teschmacher…”

“It’s Contessa Mercer now, and this conversation never happened! You didn’t even saw me!” Eve whispered, holding up a finger in front of the young journalist’s face, her gaze not leaving Nia’s and setting out a staring contest with their eyes squinting, squaring each other’s will to secrecy. “No one, not even a single living soul needs to know!” She whispered through gritted teeth.

Nia tried to hold that gaze head on, but her hazel browns were no match for Eve’s fierce pair of bluish-gray eyes. “Fine!” She conceded, holding her hands up. “And that’s just because your daughter and Elly are really good friends!”

“Good!” Eve let out a huge sigh of relief and swallowed before continuing. “So…little Danvers is all grown-up now, huh?”

* * *

“I knew Lillian was just here.” Elly mumbled.

Lena held her breath as she waited, her heart not slowing down even for a bit like it was about to burst. It was a moment she never expected, did not even thought would happen so soon nor had the time to anticipate how tormenting this moment could be. _What could he be thinking and feeling right now? Is he mad at me? I'd understand if he hates me. Would he stop seeing me, then? What happens now?_

She would understand. At least that’s what she had been telling herself for the last decade. But it would definitely break her heart if ever Elly wouldn't want to see her anymore. There were just too many lies, not just to him but to all the friends who treated her like family; too many times she made excuses not to show up, too many wrongs to right or to ask for forgiveness she doesn’t deserve.

_This is the consequence of my actions. Whatever comes next, I deserved it._ She thought and reminded herself again. The thought alone was already excruciating like she always imagined. She had pictured it countless of times and came up with just as many coping mechanisms. But the truth is, she doesn’t even know where to go from there. She didn't even notice the tears rolling down her cheeks, or her trembling hands and lips, or how she forgot how to breathe.

It was never a secret. Elly always knew he was adopted and he's been bullied for it countless of times in school. Albeit all that, he was more than thankful that he didn't have to wish to be in another family. Alex was far from perfect but she had been more than wonderful as a mother, being a hands-on, single parent who tried her best to work things out with a little help from her chosen family. For him, being a Danvers is more than anyone could ever ask for. But still, there were a few times that he wondered what his biological parents were really like.

_And now she's right here, sitting right across from me, as scared and anxious as I am. _He thought to himself, getting lost from the sound of her beating chest.

"Please say something. Anything!" Lena felt ready, badly wanting for this moment to get over with. She kept holding in her breath and her tears, but realized she was failing. A familiar crinkle formed on Elly's forehead and she found it too hard to take it, whatever it might mean. The waiting, what could he be thinking, the clock ticking away before the bomb goes off, the drumming, throbbing, she felt like her chest was about to explode anytime. And it did.

The next thing she knew, she was sobbing with her face buried in her hands. It was inevitable. It was the only thing her instinct told her to do to console herself. She felt a hand on her shoulder, steady and gentle. But she can't look at him in shame, with her out-of-control sobbing and everything else she did and hid from him, his entire life. She felt his hands leave and her heart cracked slowly as her shoulders fell, thinking everything would rather fall apart as well. But to her surprise, her tear-soaked and trembling hands gently got pulled away from her face. Elly slowly wrapped them around his body, before taking her in his arms.

"You're amazing, you know?" Elly whispered in her ear with a smile, his eyes tearing up as he let himself sink in her warm embrace. It was all the words he could find at the moment. He wanted to say more but he was just as loss for words as her.

It was all Lena needed to hear. With those few words and in that instant, Lena suddenly felt whole again as they sat there locked in each other's arms. Everything else seemed to disappear. She finally sobbed and cried her heart out as honest as she can, not caring anymore if Elly finds out how big of a cry baby she really was. For the first time, everything felt so light and perfect. Nothing else mattered. It's the first time in a long time that she revealed her most authentic self to him, even to herself perhaps, of how weak and vulnerable she could truly get when it comes to family. Especially when it comes to Elly.

She felt the firmness of his back and his broad shoulders, taking in how much he's grown. _Thirteen years._ She sniffed on his hair that still smelled a bit just the same, a bit manlike sweat underneath his shampoo, and like the inside of his pod; like her little Wrinkle who used to float around his room like a balloon, but all grown up. The feeling was unreal, she can't even believe it's finally happening. For years she had worked so hard, sacrificed so much and waited ever patiently for this moment, having her Wrinkle finally back in her arms for real. But for some reason, it felt like the one who finally found the way back home was her.

Finally, he found the person who has the answers to his questions. Elly closed his eyes the whole time and did nothing else but listen to her being. Her beating heart, her sobs and how she breathes. He buried his nose to her neck and took a deep breath, inhaling all of his blurry dreams to clarity that turned out to be his old memories of her. In a flash, it all finally made sense:

The excitement he feels from the soft smell of vanilla and scotch in her sweat, the way her deep, cold voice felt so warm and comforting for him every time, and how the mere thought of seeing her again always made him look forward to it. He's always been connected to this woman. Her arms felt so warm around him, finding himself sinking deeper, fitting perfectly into it. And oddly enough, he felt his own fears about himself slowly melting away.

Despite being a Luthor, he always knew it in his heart that Lena was different. That she is good, no matter what the newspapers, the six o'clock news or his bullies at school used to say. His mama used to remind him that as well, and why Supergirl sounded so sure when she once said that Lena would never become a villain. There is such a thing as a good Luthor, he knows it. And he believes it too.

* * *

Tess was finally able to breathe, soon as she closed the door right after Nia left. She leaned with her back against it and replayed their conversation in her head in order to remember the new details she added from the backstory she made up a long time ago. As far as she knows, Nia is less likely to be a threat unless Kara finds out about her return in National City bearing new identity, and her daughter going in the same school as her nephew.

Living a lie that is her life as Tess Mercer had not been a piece of cake, though she always seemed to get through it all with flying colors. But things are starting to get harder as their world started getting smaller and smaller by the day. The series of plans are being carried out accordingly and she has to be more careful and watch a little more closely.

“Did she asked you about dad?” Leila suddenly reappeared after hearing Nia leave, snapping her mother out of her own thoughts.

“Yup! But you know the drill.” Tess answered with her usual smile.

“She called you Eve. You knew each other.” Leila blurted out flatly, knowing fully well what kind of smile that was. She waited for her mother’s response but didn’t get any. “I hate lying to my friends.” She rubbed her palm with her thumb. It’s the kind of smile that her mother would usually make after telling a significant lie.

“I told her you didn’t know anything.”

“I know the drill.” Leila responded coldly. “I like Nia. She’s cool and she’s really nice to me.”

“I can tell. Look, sweetie…I hate being the villain of your story. I don’t want to be the one stopping you from making friends, but you do know why a lot of people doesn’t like your dad, right? Especially the ones from the media?”

“I’ve always been careful about that, mom. There’s no need to worry.” Leila reassured her.

“I know. And I’m so sorry that I can’t tell you everything.” She answered softly and thought to herself: _I truly am._

“Because the less I know, the better. Blah-blah-blah and you only want to keep me safe. Yeah, I get it.” There was emptiness in Leila’s tone, though she knew her mom really meant that apology.

“Leila…”

“You don’t have to feel bad about it. We’ve been living like this for as long as I can remember, so…it’s fine. Really.”

They both exchanged deep sighs and Tess replied. “I trust you. Okay?” _I really do._

* * *

“You’re not mad at me?” Lena sniffed the moment they parted and Elly just shook his head in response while she dries his tears off his cheeks with her thumb. He smiled widely and his eyes glimmered, sending little butterflies in her stomach.

“So…will you stay for the night? Come on, ask me anything. What do you wanna know?” She asked him with a nervous, yet excited smile.

It seemed like all the walls between them vanished and a huge weight lifted all of a sudden. The new unbounded freedom felt foreign and scary, but not in a bad way because it felt like everything they’ve been looking for has finally been found. And the need to savor it, take and enjoy each moment one at a time was instinctive.

“A lot of things, but I…I don’t know which one to ask first.” Elly mumbled and sniffed and wiped off tears from Lena’s cheeks with his fingers. “Or you could just…tell me everything and I’ll just listen.”

"Well, I…” Lena tried to think of something interesting to say but there was just too many. “I can show you something, like…your old room, perhaps?"

“I had a room?!” Elly’s face lit up like the morning sun.

“Yes! Right here inside this building. Well, it was a secret lab but…it was all yours.” Lena nodded slowly, her smile unfading. “And it was pretty cool.”

Calls had already been made and both of them agreed that dinner could wait. And so they proceeded on to their spontaneous activity for the night. The walk they had along the labyrinth of corridors was quiet, for Lena at least. But Elly only hears endless thumping, loud but slow, from inside their chests and from the soles of their feet, their breathing deep and steady.

“Project Wrinkle.” Lena blurted out when they came to a halt in the middle of an empty corridor.

Elly kept silent but his ears and eyes wandered up and down the empty corridor. Everything looked too quiet and he was sure nothing else surrounds them but white walls.

“The walls are lined with lead.” Lena muttered the answer to his thoughts as the wall on their left slid open, revealing a small empty room. She nodded, stepped inside and Elly followed. The wall closed again and the small room started to move.

“A secret elevator. Cool!” Elly tried not to sound too impressed when green laser lights started scanning them.

“It’s a little outdated, but…let’s see if Ross can do something about it.” Lena breathed in the last of her sniffles and cleared her throat “Ross? Restore the Wrinkle Room, please?”

_“Consider it done, Ms. Luthor!” _A soft voice suddenly responded out of nowhere.

“Thank you, Ross!”

_“Pleasure. And we’re glad to have you back, Wrinkle!”_

Elly looked around the small room a little confused. And meeting Lena’s gaze while she flashed her eyebrows at him only made absurdity suddenly come to mind. “Wha-me? I…I’m Wrinkle?” He pointed to himself blinking back at Lena, who just grinned and let out a soft amused laugh.

“You were called Subject 15-03c, to be exact...” She started, her lips curling a bit on one side. “…but Wrinkle sounds cute and easier to say, so…”

Thick jets of steam filled the inside of the elevator right before it opened again. Then they were standing before a spacious room, already well-lit while furniture and other things slowly rose up and revealed themselves from storage, from underneath the floors.

“Here we are!” Lena announced softly and let Elly take a look around. He seemed a bit nervous, but his eyes grew shining with interest.

The whole room was littered with shades of blue, mostly dark navy, with some whites to pale yellows and accents of bright red. Along one side of the baby blue painted walls was a closet and a dresser, adjacent to the line of shelves filled with children’s books and loads of toys, while rubber playing mat covered the floors where a giant stuffed lion, which looked exactly like his Leo, sits quietly in a corner. And it’s as if that the empty whiteboard on the wall waited to be written on, along with the couple of little chairs around a small activity desk beside a little organizer shelf of pens, paints, crayons and art supplies just below a few monitoring screens hanging on the wall, Elly pulled up one of the small chairs and sat on it. He made a little side-to-side rocking motion just to see if it will break from his weight or not, knowing too well that he was being watched. He chuckled by himself with amusement, took a pen and didn’t even bother to check if it was the right kind before scribbling something on the whiteboard on the wall: _Wrinkle was here!_

A wide portion of the wall right across from it was an artificial window, showing the live feed of the city view outside. And facing it was an empty desk and a swivel chair, claiming to be Lena’s little workstation. Elly had to look twice, almost missing the couple of Polaroids taped against the wall which turned out to be baby pictures of him. One with his clueless face filled with cupcake frosting and the other of his smiling and butt-naked self, floating mid-air with his tummy facing the floor. He chuckled at the sight of it and pointed it to Lena, who just watched him intently from a distance. She nodded and smiled with her eyes in reply.

“That was on your first birthday.” She told him.

A cozy chaise lounge just next to the desk called out to him, so he took a seat and ran a hand on its soft cushioned surface, which seemed comfortable enough to sleep on. The door in the middle looked like of a bathroom, and at the far end of the room was a small kitchen with a dining area for two, a highchair, an empty fridge and a few cupboards with nothing in them but empty glass jars, some snifter and a crystal decanter, half-filled with amber liquor which is probably none other than scotch.

The whole place doesn’t look like a lab or a nursery at all. It was more like a modern themed toddler’s studio apartment, if not only for the huge football-shaped isolation pod sitting right in the middle, big enough to fit a full grown man or two inside.

“This is…this was my room?” He asked with such interest.

“It looked way cooler fourteen years ago.” Lena clicked her tongue with a slightly disappointed _tsk_. “And this…” She stepped towards the isolation pod and placed a palm against the glass. “…this is where you hang out most of the time.”

The pod made a soft whirring sound at Lena’s touch. Its soft lights started to glow and the glass slid open, inviting him to the mattress inside.

“This is the Isis pod.” She gestured for Elly to get in. “This is where you sleep. It took care of almost everything; monitored your vitals, tested your abilities and your limits, provided your needs, food, hygiene, entertainment…”

“When you’re out at work? That’s cool!” Elly mumbled as he wandered his eyes around the inside of the pod like he was in search of something. “So this pod was like…my personal nanny?”

“Umm…something like that?”

“Then it should be called a Nanny Pod: Handling everything while you’re away!”

“Err…right.”

Elly sat on the mattress and lied on his back for a while trying to remember his memory or the feeling of being inside that pod. It did felt quite familiar but he was a little unsure. He blinked at its clear glass ceiling a few times while Lena just looked on closely from the outside. She scribbled a gesture on the glass with her finger and the inside of the pod was suddenly filled with a moving image projection of the outer space.

“There you are!” Elly muttered, a smile spreading across his face. “I’ve seen this before, I remember!”

“You do?”

“Yeah, in my dreams! I’ve seen this image like hundreds of times!” Elly continued with excitement in his tone. “I was in some kind of a small spaceship. It was so peaceful and quiet, and everything was so dark. There was nothing but me inside that ship and the stars. It looked exactly like this!”

Lena can’t help but smile after hearing that story and wondered how many more interesting dreams did he had and told for all those times that she wasn’t there to hear it? _Well, we have all the time in the world now._ She reminded herself and the butterflies started to flutter inside her tummy again. _I did it, Alex! He’s finally back home and he’s here to stay! With me!_

“It felt a little kind of lonely, though.” Elly mumbled and shrugged.

A few more swipe and tap on the pod’s surface, and a mellow sound of an acoustic guitar started to play. Elly sat up slowly from his old bed, looking a little lost from the music.

“_Melancholy moon, why are you hiding from me?_

_ Way behind the clouds far away for me to see._

_ Melancholy moon, I miss the sparkle in your eyes,_

_ Remember the last time you looked at me, I smiled?_

_ Oh, don't be shy...”_

“Hey, I know this song! You are…my faithful witness…” He tried to recall the words while some of the lines he can’t remember were replaced with soft hums of the same melody.

_ “Cause you are my faithful witness…_

_ You are my ever watchful eye._

_ You never slumber or sleep, your fingers' on my heartbeat._

_ At the end of the day I pray you'll find me faithful,_

_ You'll find me...”_

_How could he even remember this?! He was only a baby. _Warm tears started streaming out of Lena’s eyes without warning. It was the song she would always sing to him to make him fall asleep at night. _What else does he remember?_

“Did mama knew about this place?” Elly asked all of a sudden, climbed down the pod and stepped towards the shelves of books.

Lena instinctively dried her tears, clearing her throat before responding to him. “Yes. She’s the only one I invited here to see you.”

“Why just her?”

“Because even before she saw you, I knew you’d be in…better hands.”

“Well…you weren’t wrong about that.”

“She has access to everything you would need. The knowledge, technology and resources, the authority, secrecy…and a lot of people trusts and respects her. I didn’t have that before.”

“But now you do!” He flashed her a big smile which she mirrored shyly.

“The fact that she’s also human and my only trusted friend who knows more about Kryptonian physiology than I did at the time adds to that. Also, she was surrounded by the right kind of people. You know, they can all give you the protection you’d need, the love, attention, care and guidance…which I…I knew I can’t provide that.”

“Yet everything about this room says otherwise.” Elly pulled out a pop-up book of The Nutcracker from one of the shelves and opened a page. “So…mama already knew then what I was?” There wasn’t any trace of disappointment or whatsoever on his face, but only head-on curiosity.

“No, not at first.” Lena had the urge to swallow and take a deep breath before continuing. “But you know how she is. She figured it out on her own.”

Elly’s brows went up and his wide eyes didn’t even look up from the book he was flipping through, blinking as he took his time to contemplate. “Why was I not surprised? Hmm…and who else knows what I am? Other than Lex and Lillian?” He blurted out unabashedly as he closed The Nutcracker, putting it back to where he took it from. It made Lena swallow thickly.

“I umm…just me and Alex, as far as I know. And Ross, of course.” She shrugged and smiled weakly.

“Hah! Right. So…why did you…?”

“Why I did what, exactly?”

“Gave me up?”

Elly’s choice of words burned her a little. But she took it anyway, with the whole truth all prepared and ready to be told. And without anything holding her back, she answered:

“I…I didn’t want to. I never wanted to.”

Elly paused to nod, accepting her answer. “But…?”

“It wasn’t safe for you to stay here with me.”

“Not safe how?”

“Someone broke in here inside your room while I was out.”

“Oh...”

“I made sure the security was up and running. What exactly happened that night is still a mystery to me. They could’ve taken you, but for some reason, they left you behind. You were so vulnerable, I just can’t let you end up in the hands of the wrong people, so…I had to.” Lena took a deep breath. “I’m sorry.”

Elly nodded slowly, another piece of the puzzle being put in its place by the mere sight of sadness on Lena’s face. “That must’ve been so hard for you.”

The silence that followed was long and awkward. Lena had been going back to that horrible night for so long and for too many times, yet she still can’t get used to the tight squeeze that her heart makes when she replays that memory in her head. She wanted to say something but for some reason, she suddenly didn’t know how to respond to that.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have...” Elly muttered quickly after realizing what he has caused.

“Oh! No, it’s fine. Really.” She said in return.

“Umm…we can talk about something else over dinner. I’m starving!”

“Okay. Then, let’s get something to eat! You know what? Why don’t we just get out of here?”

“Great idea! There’s a nice pizza place about seven blocks from here…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I write just to get it out of my system. Talk to me on Tumblr.


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